Public Health Institute

The United States is one of the only countries in the world without paid parental leave, and while a handful of states have started their own paid-leave initiatives, even these programs do not cover all workers. Nor is there a national program for preventing or treating postpartum mood disorders (PPMDs)—mental health conditions that include postpartum depression, postpartum anxiety, PTSD and postpartum psychosis—which affect about 15 to 20 percent of new birthing parents in America. Now, from Philadelphia to Flint, cities are experimenting with guaranteed income programs to help ease new and expectant mothers’ financial stress:

PHI's Getting it Right from the Start has released its 6th Annual State of Cannabis Policy in California Scorecards, offering a comprehensive overview of cannabis policies in cities and counties that allow retail sales. The 2024 scorecards show that 67% of Californians are now living in areas where legal cannabis is available, up from 55% in 2019. The scorecards also identify critical opportunities to shape a safer local cannabis marketplace amid rising public health concerns. "As cannabis products have become increasingly potent and industry marketing ever more appealing to youth, there is an urgent need for stronger regulatory protections that recognize rising public health concerns. Our scorecards provide a resource for communities looking to adopt evidence-based practices and set a standard for responsible cannabis regulation," said PHI's Lynn Silver, MD, MPH, FAAP, Senior Advisor and Program Director for PHI’s Getting it Right from the Start.

As the year comes to a close, PHI is sharing impact stories from staff and partners who are working alongside communities to improve health and equity. Thank you for celebrating our 60th anniversary year with us! Today, we're highlighting Dana Sherrod, co-founder and executive director of PHI's California Coalition for Black Birth Justice, which helps unify and strengthen the Black birth justice movement in California by serving as a statewide connector and convener, supporting the care and capacity of the Black birth justice workforce, and scaling systems change improvement efforts with health care institutions. "This work is crucial, not just for Black families, but everyone," said Dana. "We have a maternal and infant health crisis in this country, which is indicative of larger systemic issues. We have to prioritize ensuring that moms, babies, and families are well. For our team, that means focusing first on those that are most harmed—Black families, which then supports improvements for all families."

This groundbreaking HPI report, recently released by PHI's Public Health Alliance of Southern California, highlights how inequities in housing, education, jobs, and environmental quality impact health and mortality qualifying, for the first time, how improving neighborhood conditions can prevent deaths. This presents communities, funders and decision-makers with both an opportunity and urgent call to action: addressing the root causes of health inequities saves lives and transforms communities. "For too long, preventable deaths have been normalized in under-resourced communities because of structural inequities that limit access to the neighborhood conditions that allow people to live long, healthy lives. This study provides a powerful, data-driven foundation for changing that narrative. By addressing the social determinants of health and confronting systemic racism, we can create conditions that allow everyone to thrive. It's not just about saving lives—it's about actually building a California where health equity is a reality, not merely something given lip service," said Tony Iton, Lecturer and Social Impact Fellow, UC Berkeley School of Public Health. https://lnkd.in/gaw-KkMm

A groundbreaking new study by PHI's Public Health Alliance of Southern California, using their Healthy Places Index (HPI) platform, has quantified how community conditions directly impact mortality rates across California. Using the HPI—a composite measure of 23 factors, including economic standing, education, housing, transportation, environmental quality, and access to health care—researchers found that 24% of all deaths in the state, over 60,000 per year, could have been prevented by addressing inequities in community conditions, also referred to as social determinants of health (SDOH). This figure jumps to a staggering 72% when looking specifically at COVID-19 deaths (26,000 in 2020-2021) during the pandemic. Read the full press release, see the study, and help spread the word:

We're Hiring | Messaging Guide for Public Health Advocates: How to Reframe Firearm Safety | Meet the 2024-2025 Together Toward Equity Leadership Fellows | Apply by Jan 17: Host a PHI CivicSpark Fellow to Advance Health, Resiliency & Climate Equity in Your Community -- all that and more, in our latest updates:

In October, PHI’s Center for Immigrant and Refugee Health hosted, “Inclusive Education: Improving Academic Success and Promoting Wellness for Afghan and Ukrainian Refugee Students,” an in-person event that provided a unique opportunity for direct stakeholder collaboration, information sharing and community engagement. The gathering brought together education partners, community-based organizations, refugees, community members, Federal, State, County, and other relevant stakeholders to improve academic success and promote wellness for students and their families. Watch a recorded conference session featuring PHI’s Dr. Mohammad Sediq Hazratzai, MD, MPH, who explored how academic success, wellness and refugee integration can be achieved if we consider the larger ecosystem such as education, social support, health and community services:

Experts have long warned about the negative health impacts of binge drinking, but now they are frequently focusing on a much more dangerous pattern of alcohol consumption. High-intensity drinking is defined by consuming eight or more drinks in a row for women and 10 or more drinks in a row for men. PHI’s Camillia K. Lui, PhD, scientist at PHI’s Alcohol Research Group (ARG) Group, spoke with the New York Times, sharing insights on how high-intensity drinking is on the rise among certain population groups and is more harmful than binge drinking. 

In 2024, the U.S. Surgeon General declared injury and death from firearms a public health crisis, which highlighted the critical and ongoing need for solutions to the crisis grounded in principles of community action and systems change. PHI’s Berkeley Media Studies Group, in partnership with the Hope and Heal Fund, has created a new resource: “‘Together is where we save lives’: A messaging guide for California advocates working to reduce injuries and fatalities from firearms.” Advocates can use the guide to reframe how we talk about the most common forms of gun violence, which are also the least likely to grab headlines: domestic or intimate personal violence, suicide, and community violence. Explore the guide: https://lnkd.in/dJVXTmdv

As part of our end-of-year series celebrating PHI's 60th anniversary year, we're sharing impact stories from staff and partners who are working alongside communities to improve health and equity. Today, we're spotlighting Dr. Mohammad Sediq Hazratzai, who founded PHI's Center for Immigrant and Refugee Health which helps connect newly arrived refugee families with information, resources and services provided by culturally rooted staff who are also part of the refugee communities. "As an Afghan refugee, physician, and public health professional, my interest in this work stems from witnessing firsthand the profound health challenges faced by refugees and immigrants," said Dr. Hazratzai. "After resettling in the United States, I recognized that many immigrants and refugees continue to encounter significant barriers to healthcare access and integration. My lived experience and expertise in immigrant and refugee health motivated me to leverage my background to address the disparities these populations face."